Woman&#39;s undergarment



lame?, 1,524,491

H. C. SPRENGER WOMANS UNDERGARMENT Filed Feb. 19, 1921 Patented Jan. 27, 1925.

UNITED STATES HERMAN C. SPRENGER, 0F SPRING CITY, PENNSYLVANIA.

WOMAN S UNDERGARMENT.

Application filed February 19, 1921.

To @ZZ whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, HERMAN C. SPRENGEP., a citizen of the United States, and resident of Spring City, county of Chester, State of Pennsylvania, have invented an Improvement in VVomens Undergarments, of which the following is a specification.

The object of my invention is to provide a construction of womans undergarmentand especially the bust portion thereof which by special shaping and combining with shoulder straps will cause the garment when worn to assume a shape substantially corresponding to what is generally known as a low-cut bodice having a practically straight transverse upperI edge at the bust portion and provided with shoulder straps; and more particularly in so shaping the knitted fabric of which the upper portion of the bodice is formed that its natural elasticity coupled with the special shape given to it will cause the garment to snugly fit (without sagging) to the body of-the wearer and present a substantially horizontal upper edge while being sustained by more or less delicate shoulder straps.

A further object of my invention is to form my improved low-cut bodice of tubular knitted fabric with very little waste material while at the same time taking advantage of the elasticity of the material to insure the horizontal or straight upper edge effect while preventing the falling of the garment under the arms. y

lith the above and other objects in view, the nature of which will be more fully understood from thedescription hereinafter, the invent-ion consists in the novel construction of womans undergarment as hereinafter more fully described and defined in the claim.

Referring to the drawings: Fig. l is a front view of the bust portion of my improved garment showing the relative proportion and shaping of the parts before being stretched in the application to the wearer; Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the garment as applied-to the wearer; and Fig. 3 is a diagrammatic view illustrating the manner of cutting the fabric and the shape assumed when applied to .the wearer and also comparatively indicating the form of cutting and form of the nearest approach to this type of garment which has heretofore been generally sold on the market.

2 is the body of the garment and is formed Serial No. 446,251.

of a seamless tube of knitted fabric preferably of a fine ribbed structure which gives considerable elasticity transversely of the length of the tube. Thus, a flattened ltube of such fabric of approximately ten inches 1n transverse width or having a circumference of slightly over twenty inches will stretch properly to snugly fit a form having a bust measure of thirty-eight inches. The upper bounding edge of the body portion is formed by side cuts 1l' and middle bust and back cuts 3 with the slight upward junction portions 5, as more fully indicated in Fig. f)

extend upwardly from the portions- 5 intermediate of the side portions 4t and middle portions 3. The dimensions indicated upon Fig. 3 are those which I have found suitable for a garment of thirty-eight inch bust measure and they are given by way of example for a better understanding of the nature of the invention and not by way of restriction, as I do not confine myself to the particular dimensions thus given. As shown, the horizontal transverse edges 4t correspond to the parts that will fit under the arms of the wearer and said horizontal parts extend inward with a slight upward curve corresponding to the part 5 the height of such curve being approximately one inch. Intermediate of the parts 5, 5, is a downwardly curved edge 3 both at front and hack of the garment, and this curvature is quite wide and relatively shallow in depth., the same extending approximately one inch lower than the level of the horizontal por-- tions t, a. The curvature 3 also extends upward to the top of the parts 5 and said parts 5 are continued in the shoulder straps l0, though these shoulder straps are formed of other material, as will be understood hy reference to Fig. l. In general dimensions, it will be observed that the width of the wide curved middle edge 3 is preferably slightly less than the width of the two portions d and this same proportion also pertains to the back of the garment, or in other words, the distance from the parts 5 at front and back along the length of the horizontal edge 4 is preferably slightly greater than the transverse width of the curved portion 3 at front or back, though these relative dimensions may be somewhat changed, if so desired.

The. shoulder straps l() are formed of open-lace edging G and closer woven edgings 3. l0 are the shoulder straps and these garment and employed for adjustment when* necessary to slightly increase or decrease the stretching capacity oi 'thega'rmentto "suit the requirementsmof.the wearer.

Then the garment thus described 1s applied i the wearer,` the 'stretching' of the garinent across Vtl'iebust landbacli` will cause edgesand lfto assume the `positions indicatedatf Sand' lfL in Fig, and the shoulder strapsVV )10, will befdrawnI down upon the shoulders ll to correspond tothe position 10u.v

the *arms to. the 'niiddleofthve `bust f and portions will dfraw the Aportions grelatively downwardfin respect to the middleI portions e' andi'willy also tendltol straighten theed'gev 8y of the middlefportions, so "as in effect to give a substantially 'straight' upper edge to the body, as required inf'aY bodice garment.

yTo make the special.construction and advantages 'oi myv improvedgarment as coinpared vtothe characterfof garment now on the market morereadily perceived, IV have placed upon dotted lines', the said latterl garmenti both Iunstretched,"con-` dition andfy'vhenstretched. to lit" the bodyl of the wearer. The fine.v dotted lines-(shown at 3?, llc"andlOCfillustrate such ajgarment before beingl applied tothe wearer and the ldotzand-dash lines?, t?. andV 1,05( illustrate theV same' garment' when inwstretchedconditionuponI the"wearer." It will be; noted that in thisgarment 'at ppresentgon` themarhet, the centrallslit 3,? 'is ypraetically, without material width* and ,the shoulderfstraps errtendfupwardlyradjacent tothe central line of the ',garment, whereas "the horizontal portions 4 arej each equal "tofone-halff. the circumference offthle; fabric, It will` alls'orpbe noted lthat theI depth ofthe slit 'lbelowfthe horizontal edges Pis greatly in excessof the depth'k of the shallowY curvature ofgthe'part 3 ing'myimp'rove'd garment.I

From Vthel foregoing descriptionk explanations,it willlbe observedthate when the garment heretofore c'oinni'only employedA isapplie'dto the wearer, the shoulder 'straps l()C Vandthe slit portion of the body at 3?, at tirent, and back separates, forming in eli'ect a vVA l'sliape`-fro`11tenddoack 3%,"the knitted fabric extending well upward to# wardl the shoulders; and further wha-twas formerly" the Vuppn" edge le now forms an' oblique or downwardly Jextendingedge fromy the 'shoulder straps to; afposition under arms, as indicated Vat 4Q. -T'his'constructlon provides a very large upwardly ezten'dingj inverted Vishaped fabric portion consti' It will' be observedithat lateral: stretching between the side portions under low-'cut garment," but is something betweelyl` a high neckgarment and a low-cut bodice.

Comparing my' garment with the garment last described, itwill be seen thatw ien my garment isstretched transif'erselv in fitting to the'ibody, the shallow curved portion 3 stretches out almost horizontally, as at' 3F,"

whereasthe horizontal ed e i still maintains its horizontality Ibutis weredsomewhat to the position 4 which brings it downward approximately into aline'n'ient with the stre'tehed. bust and back portions 3*?, and moreover bringing the shoulder strap portions into a` substantiallyvertical position as yindicated atflOaL 'This construction when applied ands'nlugly fitting the body, therefore gives to'l the garment the low-cut straight edge bodice effect which'is largel 'y employed `in silk garments and yet' with all',"it is'formed'kof knitted fabric and, therefore, has an'v elasticity'which insures the garment snugly fitting tothe ligure of the wearer, even though rvthere was material differences "in thesize ofv diilerent persons wearin Lthe same bust measure of armetit, this'bemg "ossible due tothe elast1city, It will, therel ore,i`be seen that while thefgar-` ment as 'cut' provides4 a wide shallow vcurved. central portion at front and, back vand higher horizontals'ide portions joining the central portions in shoulder straps of'considereble length,'thisshape changes when thej'grment stretched"horizontally in its application tov thewearer,` assuming a substantlal horizontal'or'substantial straight :upper edge and permitting theshoulder straps to extend almost vertically in simulation ofthe hand made garments `produced from woven fabrics as' distinguished yfrom knittedfabrics.

"It will be seen by reference to Figs. 1 and 3 Athat by having the level of theside edge 4f where it comes under the arm hi her than the bottom of the curved cdge o the bustr'and baclcportions4 3, a side stretching willact o n'aA bias below the binding edgin r and thereby compensating for reduce elastabilit'y of Ysaid' edgings; and' under'su'ch stretching the shoulderstraps arefpulled downward snugly` upon the shoulders, with a resulting efl'ectof holding all parts properly to the b'us't vand back' and drawing the upper edge of the body snugly to the back and over the breasts.

My invent-ion has more particular reference to the bust or upper portion of the garment and its lower portion may be niade in any manner desired, as for an ordinary under vest or as a chemise or envelope style of garment, as desired.

In the bodice style garments having the straight low bust, the shoulder straps are invariably attached close to the arms to prevent sagging thereunder, but this has a tendency to permit the straps slipping o the shoulders and allowing the bust portion to droop. While my improved knitted garment approximates the bodice requirements, the shoulder straps are connected with the body further from the arms and under the tension exerted by the elasticity of the knitted fabric and they are positively held upon the shoulders under all conditions of usage or exercise.

It will now be apparent that I have devised a novel and useful construction which embodies the features of advantage enumerated as desirable, and while I have in the present instance shown and described the preferred embodiment thereof which has been found in practice to give satisfactory and reliable results, it is to be understood that I do not restrict myself to the details,

as the same are susceptible of modification in various particulars without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention.

Having now described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent, isz- A Womans undergarment consisting of a body of tubular knit fabric having low cut bust and back portions made straight on the sides which come under the arms and part way over the bust and back and also made wide horizontally and further having downwardly cut shallow curved middle bust and back portions each extending of a depth slightly lower than the side portions, and shoulder straps having their ends connected with the junction points of the sides with the curved bust and back portions, the parts so proportioned that when the garment is stretched sidewise, the curved bust and back portions assume an approximately straight shape and substantially in alinement with the side portions and cooperatively produce a downward tension upon the shoulder straps whereby said straps retain their position and the garment is held positively in place and with a straight bust and back bodice effect.

In testimony of which invention, I hereunto set my hand.

HERMAN C. SPRENGER. 

